IHRDC's founder, Dr. David A. T. Donohue, with a carefully selected group of Instructional Associates, plans, develops, markets and begins teaching short courses in all areas of Upstream Technology for clients all over the world.

IHRDC begins self-publishing the first of 76 influential books on E&P Technology, many of which are adopted as textbooks for undergraduate and graduate studies.

In cooperation with Phillips Petroleum, IHRDC develops the industry's first video courses. They are soon used all over the world.

Petroleum Operations and Maintenance (O&M) Competency Management are offered to clients, complemented by a 42-module, video-based training series for operations personnel.

The Video Library for Exploration and Production Specialists, consisting of over 115 modules, is designed. Mobil Oil supports the initial pilot program. Then, in 1981, production of this ambitious undertaking begins with the support of 10 international companies. Each module consists of a book written by a recognized specialist and a carefully scripted and produced video program. The library receives 18 major awards for excellence (Telly Awards) during its twelve years of development.

IHRDC develops its first set of "Career Development Plans" for Mobil Oil. (Since then, many companies worldwide have asked IHRDC to assist in preparing similar "roadmaps" for the competency development of their workforces - from entry-level technical specialists to senior management personnel.)

As corporations are being transformed from functional "silos" to more horizontal organizations, IHRDC creates its classic energy management "Certificate" programs to meet the need for an integrated understanding of business fundamentals. These highly-regarded 2- to 4-week programs, dedicated to the integrated value chains of the energy business (oil, gas and power), consist of lectures by recognized specialists, visits to regional energy sites, and team participation in specially-designed business games.

Responding to company requests, IHRDC packages an abbreviated form of its management programs into one-week workshop sessions and begins offering them on an in-house basis.

Understanding the power of information technology to transform the learning process, IHRDC begins digitizing its E&P Video Library into a multimedia knowledge database, including more than 100 hours of video, 17,000 graphics and 10,000 pages of text.

IHRDC packages its multimedia knowledge database into a CD-ROM delivery system and calls it "the International Petroleum Industry Multimedia System (IPIMS)."

As technology advances, a Local Area Network (LAN) version of IPIMS is made available for client servers.

With the advent of streaming video, the Internet/Intranet version of IPIMS is developed, beta tested, and issued. (It remains unique to the industry. No competitor has challenged this comprehensive offering.)

In alliance with Petroleos de Venezuela, IHRDC begins building the Action Learning component of IPIMS (a comprehensive set of practical assignments that encourage "Learning by Doing"). It is devoted to the important E&P Technology area of Integrated Reservoir Management.

IHRDC Competency Management Group is engaged by Al Furat Petroleum, the affiliate of Shell in Syria, to undertake a threeyear assignment to train local nationals to become competent O&M specialists. This assignment stimulates IHRDC to formalize its Competency Assurance Process ("CAP").

IHRDC formalizes its vision of IPIMS as an integrated Web-based Knowledge, Learning, and Communication system dedicated to the oil, gas, and power sectors.

IHRDC publishes its e-commerce learning system oilandgastraining.com.

IHRDC announces four Certificate Programs in Petroleum Technology Management and a post-graduate Diploma Program in Upstream Oil and Gas Asset Management. Programs are designed around three learning formats: Distance Learning, Action Assignments, and Shared Learning Workshops.

For clients in the Middle East and North Africa, IHRDC designs its Competency Assurance Process as the foundation for training local nationals to become competent O&M specialists in such areas as oil and gas production, processing, drilling, LNG and refining.

IHRDC receives the Distance Learning Award for Excellence in Distance Learning Programming for the Business/Corporate Sector from the U.S. Distance Learning Association.

In cooperation with The Pennsylvania State University, IHRDC online students may submit up to 15 credit hours for acceptance by examination toward a Master of Engineering Degree in Oil and Gas Engineering Management from The Pennsylvania State University.

In response to the widespread industry need for a comprehensive overview of the international petroleum industry, IHRDC begins the development of "Petroleum Online: An Introduction to the International Oil and Gas Industry," a 12-module series that covers all areas of the international oil and gas industry.

IHRDC introduces 15 Blended Learning Programs, each representing one week of instruction in five different areas of Petroleum Technology. They also combine mentorguided e-Learning sessions and full access to IPIMS for challenging and comprehensive learning opportunities.

IPIMS, the e-Learning system, reaches a milestone of 60 worldwide licensees and forms its Advisory Group. The Advisory Group is composed of a small group of its larger licensees who help contribute, based on actual industry needs, to the expansion and development of IPIMS.

IHRDC delivers two innovative online resources to improve its competency development efforts: Learning Plan Builder allows companies to build, with minimum effort, individualized learning plans using IPIMS, and the Competency Resource Center allows for the efficient building of competency-based models and easy self-assessment and audit by supervisors.

IHRDC's proprietary, online management, assessment and reporting solution, integrates the entire Competency Management System and provides a unique view of workforce performance through a series of customized key performance indicators. This online solution includes all data gathered from building the competency models, conducting the assessment process, providing the individual development plans and tracking the training process.